Rewriting our Rules: LUMO Update

Historically, zoning and land use policies have contributed to systemic economic and racial inequity, both nationally and locally. Updating our LUMO is one important step of many to address racial disparities institutionalized by our land use plans, rules, and decisions.

As part of this project, we compared our current land use rules with the American Planning Association's Equity in Zoning Guide, which has recommended policies for equity in land use. Here are a few of those best practices - and we encourage you to read the full comparison.

• Establish new residential zoning districts or amend existing residential districts to allow more housing by right.

• Establish new mixed-use zoning districts or allow a wider mix of residential and non-residential uses in existing zoning districts.

• Reduce or remove limits on multi-household development density, minimum dwelling unit sizes, or maximum dwelling units per acre that tend to force the construction of fewer, larger, more expensive dwelling units within these buildings.

We also conducted a Racial Equity Analysis that looks at our current practices with an equity lens. Here are a few key findings - and we encourage you to read the full analysis.

• Our historic and current land use rules contribute to higher housing costs by limiting infill development and restricting housing types. This includes zoning regulations that require large minimum lot and housing sizes as well as restrictive covenants.

• In Chapel Hill, 58% of renters are cost-burdened by housing, meaning that they spend more than 30% of household income on housing costs. Chapel Hill residents that are Black, Hispanic, or mixed race are much more likely to be renters.

The 2021 U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (“ACS”) estimates demonstrate a significant racial disparity between owner and renter households in Chapel Hill.

We currently use uniform standards for all buildings in a particular zoning district. That approach lacks nuance and doesn’t work well for mixed-use districts. The new LUMO will include design standards that are specific to different types of buildings. This approach promotes mixed-use districts and residential infill.

The new LUMO will specify what types of building will be allowed where - and what those buildings might look and feel like. We created this "Typology Resource Guide" to better understand some of the challenges and opportunities involved with these types of rules. In the guide, you can find:

• A design critique of some recent developments in town, including what went well and what could have been done better

• Visual representations of different types of building, from mixed-use buildings to cottage courts to townhomes

• Design guidance on everything from fencing and parking to sidewalks and bikeways

• Case studies that explore what it might look like to apply these design standards to different areas of town (concept only, not actual proposals)

The overall themes of the guide align with our Comprehensive Plan and our Complete Community strategy:

• Diverse Housing - A range of housing types that can meet a range of community needs, including mixed-income housing and inclusive housing.

• A Mix of Uses – Different uses, including retail, workspace, and community services, can be mixed together within buildings in order to provide a range of amenities close to home and encourage walking and biking rather than driving.

• An Inclusive Public Realm - Streets, plazas, and on-site open spaces can create a vibrant public realm that incorporates multiple activities, open to the public and residents.

• A Green Chapel Hill – Green spaces incorporated at both ground and upper levels of buildings, including landscaping, green roofs, and natural stormwater structures that support sustainability.

• Active Transportation – Create a framework of walkable streets, where traffic shares street space with transit and biking, supporting an everywhere to everywhere connectivity framework.

This guide is one of the best ways to understand what'll be possible with the new LUMO, so we encourage you to check it out!

An important goal of the new LUMO is to have more housing and more diverse housing.

MISSING MIDDLE

Our new LUMO will allow more housing types in some parts of town. Like many communities across the country, over the past few decades, Chapel Hill hasn't built enough housing to keep up with demand. And like many communities across the country, we are rewriting our rules to allow a variety of housing types beyond traditional single-family housing and multifamily apartments - aka "missing middle" housing. Missing middle includes duplexes, triplexes, quadplexes, and cottage courts. Examples of those can be found in the Housing Typology Guide.

AFFORDABLE HOUSING

Our new LUMO can encourage affordable housing by making it easier to build small-scale projects around Town. The new LUMO can also support affordable housing projects by offering relief from some development regulations like setbacks and landscaping standards.
Answer a quick poll about Housing!

Chapel Hill has some unique challenges and constraints with land use planning, especially when it comes to using land to support a diverse and vibrant economy.

• Approximately 38% of land in Chapel Hill is non-taxable. That's because it's owned by UNC-Chapel Hill, the Town of Chapel Hill, and other tax-exempt entities. This puts the remaining land under more intense pressure to generate enough property tax revenue to support the Town’s needs.

• About 67% of property tax collections are from residential uses. Single-family homes, townhomes, and condos (but not multifamily developments with more than 4 units) make up the largest share of our overall tax base. Ideally for a town like ours, only about 60% should come from these residential uses.

• Chapel Hill needs diverse development to establish a more robust tax base. This includes commercial, multi-family, and mixed-use developments.

• Our current LUMO has historically stifled development that contributes to a more robust tax base and prioritized lower-density uses. Our new LUMO can support a robust tax base by allowing for denser and more diverse development in appropriate parts of Town.

One goal of LUMO is to get a more diverse tax base, including more shops, restaurants, and other businesses.
Where do you do your shopping? Take this Poll!

The Draft Table of Contents offers a preview of the potential organizational structure of the new LUMO. The new structure is intended to improve the usability/accessibility of the ordinance.

The LUMO Audit provides a section-by-section review of the current LUMO and highlights opportunities for improvement.

The Plan Alignment Memo ties together key findings from the LUMO Audit, proposed improvements to address those findings, and the goals of the Town’s comprehensive plan.

The Engagement Plan lays out the broad strokes of community engagement related to Rewriting Our Rules over the next two years. Currently, only the earliest phases of the plan are described in detail. Later phases of the plan will be defined in greater detail as the project progresses.